Returning to the game after a while trying to adapt to the new features and such (and most probably some previous shortcomings) I'm having some difficulties with the game and I could use some advices, most problems can be classified in three areas: Military, Economy, Mana. Using Brandenburg as starting nation (my favourite nation to start after I return to the game thanks to the fact they are a strong nation in a hard start, low money, slow expansion in HRE but good military) I will try to expose my problems and the main failures.
Military
In the military sector I can win using the same strategies: fill the combat width with infantry and cavalry while artillery are behind, favour morale for infantry pips early game then switch to fire, cavalry is there for shock value and flanking early on then they become useless unless, artillery is there for siege bonus until tech 16 then they are the main provider of fire, I win the battles but the real problems there is why I lose so much manpower? While I am at maximum force limit, with some drill and a "good" general getting so many losses in the war against Stettin? I mean I snipe the enemy army siege down Stettin and I already have a 2/4k of losses and not taking in account eventually the allies of Stettin. In general I feel that I lose too much manpower during simply and streamlined war are too much and if the war is hard or I lost the war 90% of the time is a complete of wipe of my manpower reserve, what did I do wrong? This problem with the losses force me to take quantity instead of quality at the start to replenish the losses but doing so I can't get early the economic-quality bonus I always loved for "space marine" Brandenburg, is the new balancing making the high losses or I don't know how to wage war any more?
Economy
While I expect to struggle with the economic situation with Brandenburg the situation is worse then expected even in good economic situations, usually I either start strong and I can't really make up for the increasing cost of the army or I have to deal with the big cost of institution that spread so slow in my big and not so European country making me always thirsty for money, build churches in high admin region, marketplaces or workshops in diplomatic and trade center eventually some manufactories for industrialization and profit, courthouses, shipyards, and some situational related buildings depending of the problems of each starts (like Prussia -50% state capacity). Here I am missing so pieces I never understood most probably because I am always in most situation in debt even with two or three dominated trade nodes building in place and economy ideas, every tips is well accepted here, development of provinces is a problem but that goes in Mana area as the management of mana is harder since I played last time.
Mana
In mana the problems are simply too much things to spend on and not much mana for everything, mana is primary reserved for tech then if I am ahead of time I focus mana in order to complete ideas in order of unlocking from older to newest compensating with advisors as much as my economy can hold, I try to avoid getting tech before getting the institution related to it but sometime there is no option (or so I think) but to spend more point for it, then there are the unavoidable cost such as recruit General/Admirals or bad events, while I can manage that situation development kick in and I don't have any spare point to develop my provinces, witch I suspect to be my source of economic problems later on: the lack of development of provinces. So If I reserve mana for tech I don't develop the provinces, If I develop the provinces I don't get enough mana for tech, I clearly missing the priorities here and getting bigger simply make everything spiralling out of control with one problem.
A few closing notes, governing capacity is easy to manage, it's just a money sink but I still have no idea if State houses or courthouses are best to be build as cost-effective, the revamped estates are totally new for me before that the only good thing that I were able to use them for was abolishing in the government reforms, thanks for reading.
Military
In the military sector I can win using the same strategies: fill the combat width with infantry and cavalry while artillery are behind, favour morale for infantry pips early game then switch to fire, cavalry is there for shock value and flanking early on then they become useless unless, artillery is there for siege bonus until tech 16 then they are the main provider of fire, I win the battles but the real problems there is why I lose so much manpower? While I am at maximum force limit, with some drill and a "good" general getting so many losses in the war against Stettin? I mean I snipe the enemy army siege down Stettin and I already have a 2/4k of losses and not taking in account eventually the allies of Stettin. In general I feel that I lose too much manpower during simply and streamlined war are too much and if the war is hard or I lost the war 90% of the time is a complete of wipe of my manpower reserve, what did I do wrong? This problem with the losses force me to take quantity instead of quality at the start to replenish the losses but doing so I can't get early the economic-quality bonus I always loved for "space marine" Brandenburg, is the new balancing making the high losses or I don't know how to wage war any more?
Economy
While I expect to struggle with the economic situation with Brandenburg the situation is worse then expected even in good economic situations, usually I either start strong and I can't really make up for the increasing cost of the army or I have to deal with the big cost of institution that spread so slow in my big and not so European country making me always thirsty for money, build churches in high admin region, marketplaces or workshops in diplomatic and trade center eventually some manufactories for industrialization and profit, courthouses, shipyards, and some situational related buildings depending of the problems of each starts (like Prussia -50% state capacity). Here I am missing so pieces I never understood most probably because I am always in most situation in debt even with two or three dominated trade nodes building in place and economy ideas, every tips is well accepted here, development of provinces is a problem but that goes in Mana area as the management of mana is harder since I played last time.
Mana
In mana the problems are simply too much things to spend on and not much mana for everything, mana is primary reserved for tech then if I am ahead of time I focus mana in order to complete ideas in order of unlocking from older to newest compensating with advisors as much as my economy can hold, I try to avoid getting tech before getting the institution related to it but sometime there is no option (or so I think) but to spend more point for it, then there are the unavoidable cost such as recruit General/Admirals or bad events, while I can manage that situation development kick in and I don't have any spare point to develop my provinces, witch I suspect to be my source of economic problems later on: the lack of development of provinces. So If I reserve mana for tech I don't develop the provinces, If I develop the provinces I don't get enough mana for tech, I clearly missing the priorities here and getting bigger simply make everything spiralling out of control with one problem.
A few closing notes, governing capacity is easy to manage, it's just a money sink but I still have no idea if State houses or courthouses are best to be build as cost-effective, the revamped estates are totally new for me before that the only good thing that I were able to use them for was abolishing in the government reforms, thanks for reading.